Top Movers

Hays flags operating profit at lower end of guidance, Vistry profit before tax slides

By Josh White

Date: Wednesday 15 Jan 2025

(Sharecast News) - London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 34 points higher on Wednesday, having closed down 0.28% on Tuesday at 8,201.54.
Stocks to watch

Recruitment firm Hays said it expected interim pre-exceptional operating profit of £25m, towards the lower end of the consensus range amid subdued trading conditions as net fees fell 12% in the second quarter. Group consultant headcount decreased by 2% in the quarter, mainly in the UK, and by 15% year-on-year.

Vistry Group said in an update on Wednesday that it expects an adjusted profit before tax of about £250m for the 2024 financial year, down from £419.1m in 2023, aligning with revised guidance, as total completions increased 7% to around 17,200 and adjusted revenues rose 9% to £4.4bn. The FTSE 250 housebuilder reported a net debt of £180m as a result of higher-than-expected finished stock and work in progress. Looking ahead, Vistry said it was focussed on its asset-light partnerships strategy, targeting improved profitability and cash generation in 2025 despite ongoing market uncertainties.

Newspaper round-up

The "cost of dying" has hit a record high, prompting growing numbers of grieving UK families to turn to crowdfunding or sell possessions to help pay for a funeral, according to a report. The average cost of a basic funeral has increased by 3.5% in a year to hit an "all-time high" of £4,285, according to the insurer SunLife, which has been monitoring UK funeral costs for two decades. - Guardian

The owner of Sports Direct has confirmed that two-thirds of its retail workforce remain on zero-hours contracts ahead of new legislation designed to limit their use. Frasers Group told MPs who are examining plans to strengthen protection for employees that 11,500 staff were on the contracts, which do not guarantee any weekly working shifts, and did not receive compensation even if shifts were changed at the last minute. - Guardian

Rachel Reeves's Budget tax raid will result in fewer workers across the retail sector, sparking fears that customers will receive worse customer service. As well as warning of price rises following the Budget, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has said employers are also preparing to cut back on staffing to cover the cost of higher National Insurance rates. In its latest survey, the lobby group revealed that almost half of retail bosses expect to trim headcount in shops (46pc), while the majority of businesses (56pc) are also planning to reduce hours and pare back overtime. - Telegraph

KKR, the American private equity group, has appointed Sir Jeremy Darroch, a former boss of Sky, as an executive adviser to help it grow its telecoms, media and technology activities. Darroch, who was Sky's chief executive between 2007 and 2021, will help "identify new investment opportunities", KKR said. - The Times

The UK economy is edging closer to stagflation amid the sharpest fall in business confidence in two years and entrenched anxieties about tax rises, a survey shows. An index of business confidence compiled by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) slid by 14.2 points over the past three months to 0.2, the weakest reading since the final quarter of 2022 when the UK was gripped by financial market volatility after the mini-budget. - The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks delivered a mixed performance on Tuesday as the blue-chip Dow Jones built on yesterday's gains.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.52% at 42,518.28, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.11% to 5,842.91 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.23% firmer at 19,044.39.

The Dow closed 221.16 points higher on Tuesday, extending gains recorded in the previous session.

Tuesday's primary focus was news that US wholesale inflation rose month-on-month in December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, principally due to heightened energy prices throughout the month.

December's producer price index increased by 0.2% last month, down from the previous month's 0.4% increase. On an annualised basis, producer prices were up 3.3% year-on-year, down from 3.4% in November.

..

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:


Top of Page